Lighting Problems. Need help Now!!

[cortney09]

I am on an extremely tight budget (limited income) and i bought some halogen work lights from Walmart. I can't seem to get the lighting correct without shadows or a flat image. I want to fix this issue for video and still photography. Any help would be greatly appreciated.:mrgreen:

 

[SpeedTrap]

can you post a picture of the problems?

 

[cortney09]

can you post a picture of the problems?

Here's a pic I just took with my current set up.

 

[keith foster]

There are several things you can do that will help.
#1 You need to white balance for the lights you are using
# 2 Get the subject further from the wall
# 3 Get your lights higher, they should be higher than the subjects head
# 4 Diffuse the light. Put piece of white paper or something in front of the lights so they aren't so direct.

Hope this helps. Keep posting and trying new things.

 

[Dominantly]

Camera Maker: Canon
Camera Model: Canon PowerShot SX110 IS
Image Date: 2010:02:23 09:52:46
Focal Length: 10.3mm
Aperture: f/3.5
Exposure Time: 0.013 s (1/80)
ISO equiv: 80
Exposure Bias: none
Metering Mode: Matrix
White Balance: Auto
Flash Fired: No
Color Space: sRGB


For reference

 

[keith foster]

can you post a picture of the problems?

Here's a pic I just took with my current set up.

Here is my shot at fixing the white balance and sharpening a little with Lightroom.

 

[PhotoXopher]

Just wanted to comment on one of the suggestions. I'm not so sure putting paper in front of a very hot work light bulb is the greatest thing to do.

 

[JimmyO]

If you want softer more even light try lighting through sheets hung up infront of the lights

 

[keith foster]

Just wanted to comment on one of the suggestions. I'm not so sure putting paper in front of a very hot work light bulb is the greatest thing to do.

Good point. I didn't think about how hot work lights are. I haven't used anything like that for a while. I mostly try to avoid anything that begins with the word "work".

 

[Dominantly]

Use compact fluroescent daylight bulbs instead!

The two catch lights in the eyes are pretty interesting.

 

[Big Mike]

Those work lights really aren't ideal for portrait photography...but that doesn't mean you can't use them. One of the problems is that the light is rather hard and it's difficult to soften the light because these halogen devices get extremely hot, so any diffusion material has to be far away from them.

I can't seem to get the lighting correct without shadows or a flat image

Can you tell us more about what you are trying to do? As in, what do you consider to be 'correct'?

 

[brettmc]

you could also try having your subject step forward from the wall to help avoid those shadows

 

[cortney09]

Those work lights really aren't ideal for portrait photography...but that doesn't mean you can't use them. One of the problems is that the light is rather hard and it's difficult to soften the light because these halogen devices get extremely hot, so any diffusion material has to be far away from them.

I can't seem to get the lighting correct without shadows or a flat image

Can you tell us more about what you are trying to do? As in, what do you consider to be 'correct'?

Trying to get both still and video lit up enough to eliminate shadows in the back, and get a good clear image of the subject(s) that isn't too dim, and that makes the subject(s) stand out more so, not as flat looking is the best I can describe..

 

[LearnMyShot]

Try diffusion tissue or bounce one light off of a white card....One side should be brighter than the other so start with one light...get that where you want it then add the next light...I have a tutorial on this to see if you want and it's free LearnMyShot - learn how to photograph anything keep shooting!

 

[GeneralBenson]

Try diffusion tissue or bounce one light off of a white card....One side should be brighter than the other so start with one light...get that where you want it then add the next light...I have a tutorial on this to see if you want and it's free LearnMyShot - learn how to photograph anything keep shooting!

Thanks for the self promotion.